What documents should employees receive from employers at time of hiring (California Law)?

An employee receives many documents at the time of hiring.   It may not come as a surprise that most employees do not carefully read all the documents provided to them.   

However, it is important to take a moment and read them through.   If the employer is providing the relevant and required documents, they will serve as a valuable roadmap for some of the most important legal rights and protections an employee has during employment.   

California law has specific requirements regarding notices and documents that an employer typically must provide at the time of hiring.   What are they?

Wage Theft Prevention: California's Wage Theft Prevention Act requires employers to provide employees with California's Department of Industrial Relations’ Sample Notice specifying an employer's contact and Workers' Compensation information, an employee's wage information and paid sick leave information.

Minimum Wage: Many cities or counties in California have local ordinances specifying the minimum wage for employees, and require employers to post notice of the applicable minimum wage.

Commissions: Labor Code Section 2751 requires employers to provide employees who are paid on commission basis to specify in the employment contract the method by which the commissions shall be computed and paid.

Tax Documents: Employment Development Department’s (EDD) Form DE-4, entitled California's Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate, allows employees to fill in relevant tax withholding information, so that employers can withhold the correct California state income tax from paychecks.

California Family Rights Act (CFRA): California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave (and/or accommodations) to care for an employee's or family member's serious health condition, or to bond with a new child.   

Leave For Victims Of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault Or Stalking: Labor Code Section 230 provides employees with job protection when suffering from domestic violence.   Employers are required to provide reasonable accommodation including leave of absence.   California's Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has model notices in both English and Spanish.

Disability & Paid Family Leave Insurance: Paid Family Leave and Disability Insurance, administered by California's Employment Development Department (EDD), provides employees with job protection and benefits for sickness or pregnancy, or bonding with a minor child within one year of birth or foster care or adoption.   

Unemployment Insurance: Employment Development Department (EDD) provides unemployment insurance and benefits to employees who were terminated or laid off through no fault of their own.   

Sexual Harassment: California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) requires employers to have a harassment, discrimination, and retaliation prevention policy, and provide sexual harassment training to both non-managerial and managerial employees.   The first major form of prohibited sexual harassment is quid pro quo (Latin for “this for that”), where someone at work conditions a job, promotion or other job benefit on an employee's submission to sexual advances or other sex-based conduct.   The second major form of prohibited sexual harassment is "hostile work environment," where unwelcome comments or conduct based on sex unreasonably interfere with an employee’s work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.   FEHA also requires employers to distribute a copy of its template Fact Sheet (or a compliant alternative writing).

Lactation: Labor Code Section 1034 requires employers to provide accommodation to mothers who need a private location and time for lactation.   Employers must provide a copy of its lactation accommodation policy to new employees upon hire, and when an employee makes an inquiry about or requests parental leave.

Predictive Scheduling Ordinances: Cities such as Berkeley, Emeryville, San Francisco, San Jose, and Los Angeles have predictive scheduling ordinances, requiring employers to provide advance notice of hourly employees’ typical work and shift schedule, and changes to an employee’s regular schedule.

Inventions Developed By Employee On Own Time: Labor Code Section 2870 requires that when employment policies require an employee to assign any invention rights to an employer, the employer must provide written notice that the policy does not cover inventions created by the employee outside of worktime and without using the employer’s equipment.

In addition to California state law, federal law also requires employers to provide certain documents to employees at hire.   In upcoming articles of this blog, we’ll discuss additional categories of documents required by federal law, as well as documents that employers must provide during employment and at the end of employment.